“I really don’t know how it happened,” James Grisius says of the incident that landed him in the hospital on November 29, 2017. “I have type 1 diabetes. Something happened at my house that I have no memory of. My brother found me and called the ambulance.”
James – who recently moved to Pearson, Wisconsin, from Arizona – received emergency care at Aspirus Langlade Hospital in Antigo. With all of the hospital’s beds full, Aspirus Langlade staff arranged for James to spend his necessary hospital stay at Aspirus Medford Hospital.
“Waking up here yesterday is the first thing I remember,” James says as he prepares to check out of the hospital two days later on December 1. “It’s a scary feeling to wake up not knowing where you are or how you got there. But the people here at Aspirus Medford reassured me that everything was okay. They took such good care of me and were so attentive. They made sure I had everything I needed the minute I woke up. To me, it’s so rare nowadays to encounter somebody who actually cares. They don’t know me from Adam and I’m sure they heard that I was out of my head and acting combative when I got to the emergency department in Antigo. Most people wouldn’t want to take care of someone like that, but the staff at Aspirus Medford did and I’m grateful.”
James spent the first part of his Aspirus Medford hospital stay in the eICU, the hospital’s intensive care unit. There he received an added level of care through UW Health’s e-Care of Wisconsin program. At an off-site center, UW Health critical care experts remotely monitored James around the clock, providing support to his bedside hospitalist and nurses. Among his bedside caregivers were hospitalist Vickie Woelfel and registered nurse Darla Kloth, both of whom he credits as providing him with a superior experience.
“Vickie is just unbelievable,” James says. “And Darla, she’s been taking care of everything. They’re always asking what they can do for me, how they can help, what do I need. That’s not something I see in hospitals anymore. I’ve had type 1 diabetes for 30 years and have spent time in hospitals for a number of reasons. Most hospitals just want to get you in and out. If you heal, great; if you don’t, oh well. It’s different at Aspirus Medford. They really go above and beyond, and want to take the best care of you they can. Now here I am just two days later and I’m going home feeling like a million dollars.”
James suspects the new insulin he was put on before his recent move to Wisconsin is to blame for putting him in the hospital.
“The new insulin wasn’t working the way my doctor back in Arizona said it should,” he says. “The old insulin wasn’t giving me any problems, so I’m switching back and hopefully I won’t have any more issues. Having type 1 diabetes is risky and I can’t afford to make mistakes. That’s why I’m so grateful to the people at Aspirus Medford. They took care of me when I was basically gone. With God’s help and the blessings that are here at Aspirus Medford, I’m better. I can’t believe I’m going home already. It’s been a heck of a ride. Aspirus made a miracle happen.”